» IN THESE UNCERTAIN times why would you consider joining an Association such as Council for Aluminium in Building in 2021 , What possible benefit would it offer your business ?

The Council for Aluminium in Building ( CAB ) was formed in 1994 by the bringing together of three existing Trade Associations ; the Architectural Aluminium Association , the Patent Glazing Contractors Association and the Aluminium Window Association . Its members include consultants , fabricators , installers , systems companies and many specialist product supply and manufacturing companies . CAB became a company limited by guarantee in January 2006 . CAB is the only UK and Ireland Aluminium in Building Trade Association with over 130 Members across the supply chain , offering support in both the commercial and home improvement supply chains .

Carrying the badge of such a well established and well respected Association in the Construction Industry certainly helps when pitching for business but membership of CAB goes much deeper than this .

For a business looking to join CAB or any Association that represents their part of any supply chain there are possibly three main key considerations :

RECOGNITION

For your company to be placed in a membership listing alongside larger and well recognised industry players immediately boosts your status within the Industry and adds credibility . With this comes the pride of being a member of a team and the ability to ‘ Wear the badge with pride ’.

ADVOCACY Important for the member that they have the ability to voice concerns about the Industry and , with their input with other Members , bring about change . An ‘ All for One and One for All ’ call which is a cornerstone of why associations are forming in the first place . The power to change an environment is stronger than at the individual level . Associations , such as CAB , are the hub where individuals organise their resources , plan their strategy , and assign action plans .

NETWORKING

Associations are the original social media network . Meet with like-minded professionals interested in the same issues as you , access content that enlightens and discover new connections that support your business . These are often not tangible reasons for joining an association , but by engaging within an associations ’ network of members alliances can be achieved which could have tangible outcomes . The old adage rings true ‘ You only get out what you put in ’ when it comes to networking .

Very powerful reasons to join an Association like CAB who recognise these cornerstones of inclusivity for its Membership , but , membership goes much deeper still :

ACCESS TO RESOURCES

CAB has long been recognised for its technical support within the Industry , the CAB Technical Team sit on many of the Industry decision-making committees and represent the Membership position on everything that influences the supply chain . These positions are gained within

CAB Member Committees and Working Groups set up within the Association Membership and are open for any Member to attend . With CAB ’ s close involvement with UK standards and legislation comes the ability to be a single point of call for any Members questions when it comes to quotations or specifications .

BENEFITS Being a Member does offer tangible benefits as well , such as access to free support lines for HR and tax issues , free marketing opportunities with your PR copy appearing in the Association ezine ‘ A Window Into Aluminium ’, also access to a Members Webinar Resource which keeps abreast of contractural and economic issues in the Industry . These are just a few of the benefits and key for CAB at the moment is to build more tangible resources for Members as the Association continues to grow .